Cavaliers

Midway through the season, the No. 2 Archbishop Spalding girls soccer team has displayed a strong defense, creative midfield and capable goal scorers up front. In Wednesday's 2-0 win at No. 13 Mercy, the Cavaliers showed off another important aspect: team depth. With senior standout midfielder Gracyn Bryant sidelined with an injury, junior reserve Sydney Borum saw more playing time than usual. She made the most of the opportunity, setting up Lauren Kelly's opening goal with a nifty through ball in the closing seconds of the first half before adding a late insurance goal to help send the Cavaliers home with a win over the Magic.

Unhappy with the way they played in the first half Saturday at McDonogh, the Archbishop Spalding football players bickered briefly at halftime. Then, they left it all behind and came out united to rally from 13 points down to beat the Eagles, 14-13, in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference opener for both teams. While the Eagles (1-4) held the Cavaliers' offense to just 23 yards in the first half, the Cavaliers (3-2) dominated possession in the second, especially in the final 18 minutes.

The last two times St. Mary's football team played Archbishop Spalding, the Saints couldn't come close to their Anne Arundel County rival, but Saints coach Steve Erxleben predicted that Thursday night's game would not be a blowout. He was right, but the Cavaliers still came away with the victory, 34-20, in the 9/11 Patriot Classic at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Bryce Carrasco's 24-yard scoring run with 6:23 left in the game brought the Saints within 28-20, but Spalding's Christopher Zawitoski broke a 41-yard run on the Cavaliers' next drive to set up a 31-yard field goal by Kevin Weiman four plays later.

Home Turf: 1300 W. Old Liberty Road, Winfield Head Coach: Steve Luette (fourth season) 2011 Record: 6-5 overall; 6-1 county (Class 2A West Region semifinalist) South Carroll has become the standard of excellence in Carroll County. Since taking over in 2009, head coach Steve Luette has guided the Cavalier program to a 26-9 record, including 20-2 against county opponents. South Carroll recorded an undefeated regular season in 2010 and has become a postseason fixture, with three consecutive Class 2A West Region playoff berths.

For the first time in 14 years, Mike Whittles was not on the sideline when Archbishop Spalding's football team took the field for the first day of practice, but junior quarterback Zach Abey surely spoke for his teammates when he said their late coach's presence remains strong. "He's definitely still with us, because every day when we're working out or when we're on the field, we can hear him in our heads just saying, 'Make every day count' and 'Never give up,' because we don't know what day is going to be our last day. We try to work hard and it gives me a big lift knowing he's still with us through everything I do," Abey said.

Archbishop Spalding football coach Mike Whittles, whose inspirational 16-month battle with pancreatic cancer touched many far beyond the Severn school's community, died of the disease Thursday. He was 58. Diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer on Feb. 22, 2011, Whittles continued to coach the Cavaliers, remaining upbeat and confident that he could beat it. "This is the day that I knew was inevitable but didn't want to face," Spalding athletic director and long-time Whittles friend Lee Dove said.

The Fallston boys lacrosse team made the final quarter of the season its finest in Tuesday's Class 2A-1A state semifinal against South Carroll. The No. 15 Cougars scored six unanswered goals to turn a close game into a 14-7 win over the Cavaliers at UMBC Stadium. Senior midfielder Zach Wheeler provided most of the offense with a record-breaking performance, finishing with five goals and five assists. His 10 points broke the single-game record in Class 2A-1A , previously nine, and tied the mark for all three classifications.

The most prominent storyline of Wednesday night's NCAA tournament quarterfinal between visiting Cabrini and No. 1 seed Salisbury involves the Cavaliers' top-ranked defense against the Sea Gulls' top-ranked offense. Another thread figures to be the battle on faceoffs between Cabrini freshman Anthony DiNenno and Salisbury junior Tyler Granelli. DiNenno ranks first in Division I with a 69.6 percentage (211-of-303). Granelli isn't far behind, ranking third with a 68.4 percentage (210-of-307)

Steele Stanwick (Loyola High) fed fellow senior attackman Chris Bocklet for a fourth-quarter goal that proved to be the difference as No. 5 seed Virginia outlasted visiting Princeton, 6-5, Sunday afternoon in NCAA tournament first-round game. The six goals were the fewest the Cavaliers (12-3) had ever scored in an NCAA tournament win, and the 11 total goals tied for the fifth-fewest ever in a tournament game. Bocklet and senior midfielder Colin Briggs led Virginia with two goals apiece, while Stanwick - one of five finalists for the Tewaaraton Award, given to the top college player - added an assist.